I’ve discussed this at length on other boards. The practice can be religious but is widespread almost uniquely in America. There are a multitude of websites ranging from the educational to the down-right militant (“you can have my foreskin when you pry it from my cold dead fingers”) who are radically opposed to the proceedure.
You can’t prove this issue by citing websites either. My wife’s OBGYN and several Dr.s in my family confirm: just because you put up a lot of websites doesn’t make you right; it just means you are motivated and have an agenda. Cirumcision is a normally scheduled proceedure after birth that the Dr.s I’ve spoken to personally not only agree with, they don’t give it a second thought.
What’s my advice? Would you have surgery based soley on an opinion posted here? Ask your Dr. if you want his/her opinion. If you have strong feelings about it either way going in, they’ll respect that. Ultimately, though, its a matter of personal choice.
I kind of view this procedure in the came category as parents to pierce newborns ears. (it would be ironic if the same parents that are against circumcision havea a baby girl with pierced ears). It, to me, is kind of a dicey subject.
I myself was circumcised in Jewish traidion by a Moyl (sp?). Would I circumcise my future son? I’m not sure. Personally it would be a really hard decision for me to make. But personally, none of the male members of my family (all of which are circumcised) regret losing their foreskin all those years ago.
I was not circumcised as a baby, but I went under the knife when I was 11 or 12. I did this because I was afraid of other boys making fun of me in the locker room.
I was unconscious for the procedure itself, but I was in a great deal of pain for a month or so after. Also, I bled whenever I ran or played. My opinion: if you are going to circumcise your son, do so when he is a baby!
Whatsit Jr. is uncircumcised. We felt that there was no good reason to have it done; I’ve seen the stats on cancer risk and don’t find them compelling. In my opinion religious reasons are the only good reason to do it.
Related anecdote: The other day Whatsit Jr. was playing in his baby swimming pool in his Grandma’s back yard, and happened to get some schmutz wedged into his diaper. So when I changed him, I saw this… thing hanging off the tip of his penis. I freaked out and yelled for MrWhatsit and announced that somehow Whatsit Jr. had managed to rip his foreskin off. MrWhatsit inspected the situation, then delicately plucked the offending object away. Giving me one of Those Looks, he said, “This is a piece of pine cone.”
Oh.
Now see, it’s fun times like that, that you miss out on if you have your kids circumcised!
[disclaimer]I have very few facts about this, but wanted to toss it in as one more thing to consider[/disclaimer]
My father-in-law was recently circumsized…at age 40-something. He suffers from diabetes and heart disease. As I understand it, as a result of these two conditions, the foreskin (as well as other areas on his body) would become dry and cracked to the point of bleeding and infection. Thus, given the pain, discomfort, infection, and inability to…well you get the picture, he had to have it done.
So, probably pretty unlikely for most, but just something to think about.
I just figure you’re talking about my post. I only started citing web pages because people are saying “that’s not true” to every gosh darn thing I write!! This way they can go tell the site owner it’s not true instead.
I refuse to paraphrase anymore, so get used to cited web pages.
I only wrote because no one else has mentioned it, and it’s only fair that both sides are shown. Also, being circed isn’t more ‘hygenic’ and that old wives tale needs to be dispelled sometime.
It certainly a personal choice, and I appreciate seeing the post on diabetes…it’s definitely another thing to talk to the doctor about if diabetes runs in the family.
I am not circumcised, have no kids, but when I do have kids they will keep their foreskins.
I have never really had a problem with hygene or unusual smells from ‘down there’. I kept pretty clean as a kid, and that carried over as an adult.
An added note: My wife loves my foreskin. She calls it a ‘ripple’ during sex, and had never had that before me (I was her first circumcised boy-type person). YMMV, but there might be a sexual thing to having foreskin too, although since I have never been with a male that was cut I am not an authority on the subject.
Am I: nope
would I: no way, he’ll thank me when he’s older(or he would, except for the answer to the next part).
have: no kids, not planning to have any.
I am, but I’ve always wanted to sue my parents for subjecting me to an unnecessary operation. Some so-called professionals say it doesn’t hurt a newborn, but I didn’t walk for almost a year after having mine.
My take on it as a nurse is to have it done when they are a baby.
When I was in nursing school I did my nursery rotation and assisted the doctors with circumcisions. The female nurses on the ward let me know in no uncertain terms they thought it was cruel and senseless and spouting off facts and fallacies of the procedure and the pros and cons. Since I was cut, I didnt really think anything of it until I got my first job as a new grad. I worked with geriatric patients…right then and there I was EXTREMELY HAPPY i was circumcised as a baby. All the facts about hygeine go out the window when you start seeing these little old men who are uncircumcised with constant urinary tract infections and the inablity to clean themselves. I have even had male patients express to me how they wished they were circumcised since it was a nuisance to constantly being soiled and having to clean their foreskin. As a baby it’s great that their parents can clean them and not worry about infection, and even better when they can do it themselves as they mature, but when you become older there is no guarantee that they or anyone else will be able to help them out in that department.
My advice is just to look at the big picture and not just the times when they are infants.
This is only my opinion as a nurse, I am sure my colleagues in the healthfield will feel totally different for a variety of other reasons and experiences.
I wasn’t circed as a newborn, and I couldn’t walk for nearly a year after either!! LMAO!!! That’s funny, I’ll have to remember that.
Ah, old folks, another thing most don’t think about. I never heard they had problems with urinary tract infections. Are you sure it isn’t for another reason though? An immune system doesn’t work as well when one is old anyway…
Do you have stats on bladder/urinary infections for circed and uncirced folks after a certain age?
I bet all those heart surgeons who thought they were making big bucks are slapping themselves right now for not getting into the circumcision biz!
Seriously, I don’t know if t-bonham@scc.net meant his/her comment seriously, but I doubt making money is any motivation for a doctor to recommend circumcision. They could probably make more than $100 just by giving the new mother an extra 5 or 6 aspirin.
I never get in early with the JDT reference, but I have a pretty good record of being the first to mention the Tug-Ahoy!
I’m female, but my husband is circed. We’re Jewish, but non-practicing. We had a son a bit over a year ago, and did not have him circumcised. I’m so happy that we didn’t have it done.
I lived most of my life uncut, but with the condition known as phimosis. Essentially, the foreskin can’t be retracted (in my case erect or non-erect). A doctor recommended stretching at a young age, but it never really sunk in with me.
I eventually had the surgery last year (age 23). It was a pretty painful recovery, especially when I first woke up in the morning (TMI?) during the first month.
There were some other options, but my urologist pretty much dismissed them out of hand and spoke of the dangers of penile cancer (which he may have overstated).
So, would I have a child circed? I’m not sure. If I hadn’t had the condition that forced the surgery, I would never have considered it.
Am I? Yep. Doesn’t bug me at all(If I could have been in on the decision, I still don’t know what decision I’d make. Hard to have a frame of reference when you don’t know anything different.) and I sure as hell don’t remember any pain from it. Doesn’t make me happy or sad, it just is.
Would I? I really don’t know. Probably not going to be an issue since I don’t want kids. At any rate, I’ll have 8-9 months to think about it should it become an issue.
Have I? Nope. I don’t have kids and I don’t want kids.
Am I? – yes. Embarrassing factoid: Until I was 20, I thought I was uncircumcised. I had seen a few vague pictures of circumcised and uncircumcised men, or at least of their penises, in some sex ed pamphlet or other, and thought my own equipment defintiely matched up with the uncut example. And the few uncut boys I knew (you learn a lot from communal showers after PE) had dicks that looked more like the circumcised ones in the pictures. I found out when I told my first sex partner (now my wife) that I was uncut. She thought I wasn’t. Turned out she was right.
No regrets. Both of us are happy with things as they are.
Have I? Yes, our son is circumcised. Mrs. snac was more enthusiastic about it than I was, but I was fine with it. No regrets there either, and haven’t heard yet from snac jr one way or the other.
